


(Not So) Quiet On The Set

by MidwestChopper



Series: Hollywood Circles AU [4]
Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Accidental hiatus is over guys, Angst to a small degree, Coffee Shop Geoff, Hollywood Circles AU, M/M, Multi, Please come back, assistants
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-09-10
Updated: 2014-10-07
Packaged: 2018-02-16 20:02:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2282784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MidwestChopper/pseuds/MidwestChopper
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ray is bouncing back from the whole Joel thing really well, as long as he doesn't think about it too hard. Will it last? Will Michael ever score a date with Ryan, his hot boss? Will Burnie's film ever get finished with all this drama?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Coffee Run

**Author's Note:**

> It's been way too long, sorry guys! This is the fourth installment of the Hollywood Circles AU. I had to take a break because the plot was going to go in a direction that I really didn't want it to, and I had to totally replan a lot of it.

Ray felt so lucky to have landed his newest job. Burnie was the nicest director he'd assisted yet, and Ray already sort of knew him as a friend of Joel's. The longer he thought about it, the more he realized that he probably hadn't been a random hire. Hollywood circles had more influence than he'd originally given credit to.

Where his last director had snapped and whistled and demanded, Burnie was always polite, whether he was asking for a coffee or an opinion on how a scene was playing out. He definitely seemed like a dad-type figure on the set. He was easily one of Ray's favorite people on the film lot.

However, Ray was currently on the hunt for his absolute favorite person; Michael, personal assistant to Ryan the construction manager, was always up for a coffee and sandwich run in the afternoon. Ray didn't even have to ask Burnie if he could go out anymore, his boss had gotten so used to being handed food around three that if Ray didn't leave on his own, he'd ask him to go anyway.

As Ray strolled across the film lot, he marveled at the constant buzz of activity. It reminded him of his old place in New York, but he couldn't think about that for too long or he'd get homesick. It seemed like his list of things that he couldn't think about for too long was growing pretty rapidly.  Right now, he was looking for bits of the set that were unfinished, because that's where Ryan (and subsequently Michael) would be. After a few minutes he spotted some construction hubbub around a half-erected wall frame and headed over.

Ryan was a _very_ nice sight on the film lot. At the moment, he was standing back with his arms crossed to survey the progress, short sleeves showing off his muscular arms (heavily tanned from working outside and dotted with small scars from previous mishaps, not that Ray had looked for very long or anything like that). When he saw Ray he grinned and called out, "Hey Michael! Your friend is here!" He held out his hand and Ray shook it emphatically in greeting. He was always in such a good mood that it was infectious.

As Ryan explained to Ray what the construction team was working on, Michael made his way over, dusting his hands off on the thick denim jeans he wore. Ray smiled when he saw that Michael's curly hair was full of sawdust and reached up to brush some out. "Trying to take work home with you?" he joked.

"Nah, just trying to prove to Geoff that I actually get some work done, unlike some people," Michael shot back lightheartedly. Geoff was their favorite barista; between his heavy tattoos and the snark he could throw at them, he was incredibly likeable.

"Bring me the regular, okay kid?" Ryan slapped Michael lightly across the ass as he sent the two away with his order. Once they'd gone about twenty steps, Ray turned to Michael.

"So what, is that a thing now?" he asked.

"Why, whatever do you mean?" Michael responded, trying to feign innocence, but the devious twinkle in his eye gave him away. "Nah, it's nothing serious... Yet."

"Do you want it to be?"

"I'm 26, not exactly rushing to slow down, Ray." Suddenly serious, Michael followed, "I mean, I wouldn't turn that down, though. He seems different."

Ray was quiet as they left the film lot and continued down the street. Michael's new thing with Ryan reminded him of he and Joel, and he wasn't sure how he felt about it yet. He'd thought that Joel had cared about him, but It had been about a month and a half and while his hurt wasn't as intense as it had been in the week following their fight, it was definitely still there. He'd heard that Joel had taken him up on his "advice" and was going around with a couple new guys. He didn't know how he felt about that, either.

Almost as if Michael could tell that Ray's thoughts were starting to spiral off, he suddenly asked "So, how have you been spending your new free time? Not thinking too much, right? Cuz there's a lot better things to do, like strippers and establishing yourself as the hot new face of the club scene."

Ray smiled. Michael knew him well enough to know that both of those suggestions were so far out of the realm of possibilities for him that it had to be his way of trying to make Ray feel better. "I prestige'd the new Call of Duty." He immediately felt dumb for admitting it.

"Sweet! Is it fun? I was thinking of getting it."  
"Not really, it felt like a reboot."

"Oh. Shame you don't drink or you could come out with me and the other set guys sometime."  
Ray started to protest, and the ensuing argument lasted them all three remaining blocks to the coffee shop.


	2. The Slow-Mo Guy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ray delivers coffee and learns a little more about the current project.

The coffee shop that they liked was a lot more Seattle than Hollywood. The walls were brick and prints from local artists hung everywhere that there was space. Some houseplants cluttered the space by the windows, and the glass display case by the counter was full of homemade sandwiches. As Ray and Michael came inside, still bickering about whether a tee-total guy could hang out with a hard-drinking construction crew, the bell above the door rang. They were instantly greeted with a very loud, "There you assholes are! I've been waiting around for you all day!"

Geoff wasn't what you'd expect from a barista. In fact, Ray wasn't even sure that barista was the right term. The word didn't quite conjure up an image of a tough-looking guy with two sleeves' worth of tattoos and a full, well-groomed moustache. His sleepy eyes scanned the pair and he finally smiled. "The usual?" he asked, already starting to put their order together.

"Of course," Michael said. "If we ever decided to change it up, we'd go to the cheap shop next door to the lot and you know you'd miss our bright, smiling faces." Ray snickered at the idea of Michael ever having a bright, smiling face.

Geoff laughed and said, "So, what's new from the lot?"

\-----

Twenty minutes later, bags in hand, drinks in carrier in hand, Ray and Michael were back on set. They parted ways at the main gate, promising to meet up at the end of the day. Ray made his way back to the studio where he knew Burnie was waiting for him. As he bumped the door open with his hip, he sighed as the air conditioning washed over him. The big actors were supposed to start working on their scenes today, so they were working on one of the indoor sets. Ray quickly found the corner where Burnie had set up shop and handed him the bag with his sandwich and the carrier with the two coffees he'd ordered. Burnie looked up and, rather distractedly, asked "Could you take one of those to the cameraman over there? The one behind the really big setup. He's our slow-mo guy, but he needs caffeine to function. Go figure."

Ray grabbed the coffee closest to him and made his way over to the camera that Burnie had motioned towards, dodging tech and stepping over the wires that snaked around the floor. He saw messy brown hair peeking over the top of a display that the owner seemed to be studying intently, so he cleared his throat and said "Coffee?", trying not to startle the man. A hand reached out and Ray put the coffee in it.

"Thanks, luv," the hand's owner responded, and Ray jumped.

"Gavin?" he asked, incredulously. A head peeked up over the display and sure enough, it was Gavin. He grinned at Ray.

"Ello! Fancy seeing you here. Burnie mentioned you were his assistant for this flick, but I didn't know I was working on it too until yesterday. Something about a last minute production change. None of my business so long as I get paid, yaknow? Now go on back to Burns, I'm kinda in the middle of something." He smiled apologetically and ducked back behind the camera.

Ray traced his path around all the technology and back to Burnie, shaking his head. He should have known that Burnie would keep Gavin close. He wondered how they balanced their work and their relationship without it getting weird. Practice, he supposed. Once he was back where he needed to be, he glanced over the papers that Burnie had spread over his small work table. "Who's coming in today? I need to know what to expect." Ray had been pushed around by some of the stars who assumed that the director's assistant was also their assistant, and it was always nice to have a heads up.

"Well, for once I can vouch for a lot of them. We have Matt Hullum as the male lead, he's always really friendly, and we have Arryn Zech as the female lead. Don't worry, she's not a diva or anything. This might actually be her first major role, I'll have to check. Oh. Wait." Burnie looked at Ray, but wouldn't meet his eyes. "You uh, might not want to be here today. I'll let you leave early, if you'd like."  
"Why?" Ray asked, but his sinking stomach made him realize that he knew what Burnie was about to say.  
"Well, Joel's in this one. Pretty big role, too, so he's gonna be around the set a lot. I'm not sure what went down between you two, but I don't want you to be uncomfortable. I know he can be kind of cruel."

There was a long pause, and then "You know what? Leaving early sounds like a great idea. I'm going to do that." Ray's voice sounded stiff and formal to his own ears. He turned and walked quickly to the door. As he pushed, the door swung easily away from him. When he looked up, who else but Joel Heyman was standing on the other side with his hand on the handle. Ray dropped his eyes to the floor, but not before he saw the other man's eyes narrow and felt him shove past into the studio. Ray made his way through the door and practically sprinted around to the sheltered side of the studio. He sat down and put his head on his knees, a lot like he had after the fight.

"Fucking hell, why now?"


	3. A Different Kind Of Coffee Run

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joel gets called out in a major way. Will he prove that he can be a decent person after all?

Joel nibbled on a bagel from craft services as he glanced over his script. He was considering the inflection that he should use for his "wham" line when a strong hand clamped down on his shoulder and spun him around. Surprise jolted through him as he came face to face with a very miffed-looking Burnie Burns. _Crap,_ he thought, _he knows I've been blowing him off._ He opened his mouth to greet Burnie, but was cut off by the angry director.

"Listen, I don't know what exactly went down with you and Ray. I know that you were bringing him to parties and dinners and all that social bullshit and then you weren't. Whatever happened clearly hurt him badly enough that he decided to leave early when he heard you'd be on set today. Whatever it is, keep it off my goddamn set. I don't want my assistant too freaked out to work. He's a good kid." Burnie turned to leave, then paused. "And that pushing shit at the door? You're not a damn middle schooler. Sort your shit out with words." With that said, Burnie stalked back to his area and settled himself back into his spread of papers.

Joel felt anger rising inside his chest. Who the fuck did Burnie think he was, ambushing him and assuming this mess was his fault? That was exactly why he'd been avoiding Burnie. The second he saw Joel without Ray, he would have assumed that Joel fucked it up and gotten all self-righteous about relationships and personal connections and all that other interpersonal bullshit. That smug fucker didn't need to be right all the time. He took a deep breath, held it for a few seconds, and sighed deeply. He needed to calm down and keep going over his lines.

Eventually the call came that sent him to the main set to start filming his scenes. Joel realized that he'd been too preoccupied to really think about his part, and the rest of the day was a nightmare. He flubbed half of his lines, sending the actress he was working with into a tantrum that started with her yelling about how unprofessional he was and ended with her storming into her trailer. Then he missed all of his cues in the climactic action scene, which led to another lecture from Burnie. When everything stopped for the day, Joel was tired and frustrated. He spent a few hours thinking about what Burnie had said about keeping his personal drama off the set and decided that he would make nice with Ray tomorrow.

\---

Unfortunately, Ray wasn't on set the next day.

Or the day after that.

When Friday rolled around with no sign of Ray, Joel decided it was time to do some serious damage control. Yeah, he felt bad, but there was some kind of misconnect between them from the beginning. Since it was the weekend and he had nowhere else to be, it seemed like a good idea to figure out what had gone wrong before he tried to apologize for it. Joel laid back on his bed and thought about how he'd approached Ray on the first set they'd shared, looking for a quick hookup and maybe someone to share a dinner with. Suddenly, Joel felt a shock of realization hit him and promptly got lost in thought.

A few hours later, Joel called Ray.

The phone rang and rang until a rough voice finally answered with a cold "What?"

Joel took a deep breath and launched into his proposal. "Listen, we both know I fucked up, but I have a few things I'd like to say to you. I'll be at that cafe next door to the film lot at one o' clock on Monday, and if you don't show up I'll totally understand, but I'd like a chance to explain some stuff."  
There was a painfully long pause before Ray said, "I'll think about it" and hung up. Joel looked at his phone's flashing END CALL screen and started planning exactly what he wanted to say.

\---

True to his word, one o' clock on Monday found Joel seated in the cafe, playing with his napkin nervously. He waited for about five minutes before Ray turned up with that other assistant friend of his (Mitchell? No, Michael, he reminded himself), who put his hands on Ray's shoulders and said something to him before he sent him inside and leaned against the big plate glass window at the front of the cafe. Joel stood to greet Ray when he got to the table, and both men sat down in awkward silence. Ray seemed really uncomfortable, Joel noted, so it seemed best to get right into it. He motioned for the waitress to bring them two house coffees and leaned towards Ray.

"When I first got involved with you, I figured that since you were young, you'd be looking for a fling and not a long-term thing. Since I'm always looking for a fling, I thought it would work. But then I saw that you were taking it really seriously and I got worried. I couldn't handle the idea of something serious, so instead of talking to you I just pulled back instead. I thought if I was harsh about it you'd get it faster, but instead I guess you got hurt because I didn't think it through. I treated you like an accessory because that's what the guys I'm usually with want, and I didn't find out if that _was_ what you wanted." The waitress brought over their drinks and Joel paused to take a few sips. The way Ray was watching him made his mouth feel dryer than his little speech had.

"I'm the exact opposite of what you need, Ray, and I can't ever _be_ what you need. I don't want to settle down and I'm not willing to try. Besides, if we'd ever gotten serious, the media would be all over you and I don't think that would be good for you." His attempt at a joke fell flat as Ray continued to watch him distrustfully. He continued, "I'm sorry I was awful, and I'm sorry I wasn't straight up with you. I don't want us to be friends now. but I'd like it if we could at least be civil. Burnie's stressed as hell with you skipping work."

Ray glanced over to the front window, where he could see Michael leaning against the glass watching the traffic go by, before he said anything. When his words came, they were quiet and Joel had to lean in a little more to catch them.

"Sure. I mean, you're an asshole and I really don't like you anymore, but I'm trying to get over this and I need to be able to go back to work. We're chill."

Joel felt himself relax. Yeah, it hurt a little bit to hear what Ray thought of him, but he'd been expecting worse. He signaled to the waitress, who brought over their bill. Joel paid and as they both got up to leave, Ray stuck out his hand. Joel, totally surprised, shook it. He looked to Ray's face, and Ray smiled a little. "Thanks Joel, I do appreciate that you said all that stuff. I feel like I got some closure."  
"You sound like my shrink," Joel deadpanned, and Ray smirked a bit as they left the cafe.

Outside, Michael was waiting expectantly. Joel nodded at Ray and turned to walk back to the film lot. He could hear Michael chattering excitedly to Ray, and he smiled to himself as he made his way to the security gate. He felt like he could focus today.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like I got some closure wrapping this story line up. I can move on and explore the budding Myan relationship now!


End file.
